Mortgage Market Update/Purchase and Refinance Mortgage info

[Tamalewagon]

I'm going to go look at that house with my fried and her realtor tomorrow around 5ish. I need to check out the pool equipment and all that sorta stuff. One of them will be in touch with you soon after. :thumbsup

Many thanks Joe. I will be standing by. If you are referring to Holly, I have already been in contact. :thumbsup

 

[rivermobster]

Many thanks Joe. I will be standing by. If you are referring to Holly, I have already been in contact. :thumbsup

Yep. She told me you guys talked. Hope this Flys! 👍

 

[Tamalewagon]

Yep. She told me you guys talked. Hope this Flys! 

Shouldn't be an issue. Got all of the financial bases covered.

 

[Tamalewagon]

Mondays bond market has opened well in negative territory as stocks rally after concerns of Britain leaving the Euro seem to have subsided over the weekend. Stocks are reacting with strong gains of 246 points in the Dow and 76 points in the Nasdaq. The bond market is currently down 18/32 (1.67%), which should push this mornings mortgage rates higher by slightly more than .125 of a discount point over Fridays morning pricing.

There is nothing of importance scheduled for today that is expected to influence mortgage rates. That means we can expect stocks to drive bond trading the rest of the day. If the major indexes give up some of this mornings gains, bonds may improve as a result. The rest of the week brings us the release of five economic reports in addition to two Treasury auctions that have the potential to come into play and two days of congressional testimony by Fed Chair Yellen. So it is safe to say that we can expect an active week in the financial and mortgage markets.

The first piece of relevant data doesn?t come until Wednesday morning. However, the weeks activities actually start late tomorrow morning though when Fed Chair Janet Yellen will deliver her semi-annual update on the economy and monetary policy to Congress. She will speak before the Senate Banking Committee tomorrow and the House Financial Services Committee Wednesday, each at 10:00am ET. Her testimony will be broadcast and watched very closely. Analysts and traders will be looking for the Feds opinion on the status of the economy and their expectations of future growth, inflation and unemployment concerns that will lead to the Feds next monetary policy move. These topics should create a great deal of volatility in the markets during the prepared testimony and the question and answer session that follows. If she indicates that inflation may become a point of concern or anything that hints at rapid economic growth, we can expect to see the bond market fall and mortgage rates rise tomorrow.

We usually see the most movement in the markets and mortgage rates during the first day of this testimony as the speakers prepared words for both appearances are quite similar to each other, meaning that the second day of testimony rarely gives us anything we did not hear during the first day. The general exception is something asked or answered during the Q&A portion of the second day's appearance.

Also worth noting about tomorrow is the Fed will be selling debt this week that could affect mortgage rates. These sales may influence broader bond trading enough to affect mortgage rates if they show strong or weak investor demand. There are sales several days but the two most likely to have an impact on rates are tomorrow's 5-year Note sale and Wednesday's 7-year Note auction. If they are met with a strong demand, we could see bond prices rise during afternoon trading. This could lead to afternoon improvements to mortgage rates also. On the other hand, if the sales draw a lackluster interest from investors, mortgage rates may move slightly higher during afternoon trading those days.

Overall, I see tomorrow as the most important day of the week solely because of the semi-annual Fed testimony. Friday may also be pretty active also with the most important economic data of the week. Since it is likely that we will see a good amount of movement in the financial and mortgage markets this week, it would be prudent to maintain contact with your mortgage professional if still floating an interest rate and closing in the near future.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Lock if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[rivermobster]

That house we looked at sucked!!! lol

Pool equipment didn't even turn on. The pool is empty in Google Earth. They must have just filled it up. :thumbsdown

But...

We found another the same day just driving around. She went at looked at it yesterday with Anthony, and is in love with it. It's turn key. You should be hearing from her or Anthony soon. :thumbsup

 

[Tamalewagon]

That house we looked at sucked!!! lol

Pool equipment didn't even turn on. The pool is empty in Google Earth. They must have just filled it up. :thumbsdown

But...

We found another the same day just driving around. She went at looked at it yesterday with Anthony, and is in love with it. It's turn key. You should be hearing from her or Anthony soon. :thumbsup

Excellent! I'm glad to hear it is coming together for her. :thumbsup

 

[Tamalewagon]

Tuesday?s bond market has opened fairly calm as have stocks. The Dow and Nasdaq are showing minor gains of 21 and 5 points respectively. The bond market is currently up 1/32 (1.67%), but we likely will still see a slight increase in this morning?s mortgage rates due to weakness late yesterday.

There is no relevant economic data set for release today, but we do have a major event taking place this morning. Fed Chair Janet Yellen is delivering her semi-annual update on the economy and monetary policy to the Senate Banking Committee. She has read her statement and is now taking questions. The biggest point worth addressing is that the Fed certainly fears a British exit from the Euro could have a significant economic impact globally. For the most part, no other surprises came from the statement. There is a possibility of the Q&A yielding something unexpected, but we likely would have seen a noticeable move in bonds already if we are going to.

We also have today?s 5-year Treasury Note auction to watch. These type of sales may influence broader bond trading enough to affect mortgage rates if they show strong or weak investor demand. There are sales several days but the two most likely to have an impact on rates are today?s and tomorrow?s 7-year Note auction. If they are met with a strong demand, we could see bond prices rise during afternoon trading. This could lead to afternoon improvements to mortgage rates also. On the other hand, if the sales draw a lackluster interest from investors, mortgage rates may move slightly higher during afternoon trading those days. Results will be posted at 1:00 PM ET, so any reaction will come during early afternoon trading.

Chair Yellen will repeat today?s performance tomorrow before the House Financial Services Committee. We usually see the most movement in the markets and mortgage rates during the first day of this testimony as the speaker's prepared words for both appearances are quite similar to each other, meaning that the second day of testimony rarely gives us anything we did not hear during the first day. The general exception is something asked or answered during the Q&A portion of the second day's appearance.

The first of this week's economic reports comes late tomorrow morning when the National Association of Realtors posts May's Existing Home Sales. This report tracks resales of existing homes, giving us a measurement of housing sector strength. It is considered to be moderately important to the markets, but can influence mortgage rates if it shows a sizable difference between forecasts and actual results. Analysts are currently expecting to see a small increase in sales, pointing towards a slightly strengthening housing sector. That would be bad news for the bond market and mortgage rates. A weaker housing sector makes overall economic growth more difficult, so a sizable decline would be ideal for the bond market and mortgage shoppers.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Lock if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Wednesday?s bond market has opened fairly calm as the markets await tomorrow?s big British vote. Stocks are mixed but calm with the Dow up 43 points and the Nasdaq down 2 points. The bond market is currently up 1/32 (1.70%), but we likely will still see a slight increase in this morning?s mortgage rates due to afternoon weakness again Tuesday.

Yesterday?s 5-year Treasury Note auction did not go well at all. Most of the benchmarks we use to gauge investor demand indicated a weak level of interest in the securities. Bond prices were already lower than morning levels when auction results were posted at 1:00 PM yesterday, but they seemed to make another move lower after they were announced. That led to some lenders revising rates slightly higher before the end of the day. It also prevents us from being too optimistic about today?s 7-year Note sale. If it is another poor auction, we could see bonds weaken and mortgage rates revise slightly higher this afternoon.

Fed Chair Janet Yellen is speaking before the House Financial Services Committee this morning. Her prepared statement didn?t change much from yesterday?s version to the Senate Banking Committee. I am not expecting today?s proceedings to have much of an impact on the markets or mortgage rates. Usually, it is day one of the testimony that causes the most volatility. The general exception is something asked or answered during the Q&A portion that surprises everyone.

The National Association of Realtors posted their Existing Home Sales report for May at 10:00 AM ET today. They announced that home resales rose 1.8% last month, exceeding forecasts slightly. This means that the housing sector appears to be a little stronger than thought, making the data negative for bonds and mortgage pricing. However, it was a small variance in a moderately important report. That should keep any reaction to a minimum.

Tomorrow has three pieces of data in addition to Britain?s Euro exit/stay vote. The first comes at 8:30 AM ET when last week?s unemployment figures will be posted. They are expected to show that new claims for unemployment benefits fell from 277,000 to 273,000. Good news for mortgage shoppers would be a sizable spike as rising claims is a sign of a weakening employment sector. Since this is only a weekly update, it often has little or no impact on mortgage rates unless it show a sizable variance from forecasts.

There are two monthly reports at 10:00 AM ET tomorrow. May's New Home Sales report is the first. It helps us measure housing sector strength by tracking sales of newly constructed homes. This report is similar to today's Existing Home Sales report, but covers a much smaller portion of sales than that report does. It is expected to show a relatively large drop in sales, but will likely not have much of an impact on mortgage rates because this data gives such a small snapshot of the housing sector. I believe it will take a large rise in sales or a sizable decline for this data to influence mortgage rates.

Also late tomorrow morning will be the release of May's Leading Economic Indicators (LEI). The Conference Board, who is a New York-based business research group, produces this data. The LEI attempts to predict economic activity over the next three to six months. Good news for mortgage rates would be a decline in this index, but it is expected to show a 0.2% increase from April's reading. This means it is predicting a minor increase in economic growth over the next several months. Since this report is not considered to be of high importance, I don't see it causing too much movement in rates regardless if it shows a particularly strong or weak reading.

As for the "Brexit" vote tomorrow, a vote for Britain to break away from the European Union will likely be taken as good news for bonds and the immediate reaction should be a bond rally and drop in mortgage rates. This is because many believe it will disrupt the global economy, making U.S. securities more appealing as a safe-haven. If the vote fails (Britain stays), we will probably see bond prices move lower, driving yields and mortgage rates higher since some of our recent gains are result of fears about the vote.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Lock if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Thursday?s bond market has opened in negative territory as traders await results of Britain?s Euro vote. Stocks are showing strength with the Dow up 139 points and the Nasdaq up 40 points. The bond market is currently down 6/32 (1.70%), but strength late yesterday right before close should prevent much of a change in this morning?s mortgage rates.

Yesterday?s late strength can partly be attributed to a decent 7-year Treasury Note auction. It wasn?t an overly strong sale but did go much better than Tuesday?s 5-year Note auction. After results were posted at 1:00 PM ET, bonds moved higher. I don?t believe that many lenders improved rates intraday after, choosing to wait for today?s open to reflect that move. That is why this morning?s pricing should be very close to yesterday?s early rates.

The first of today?s three reports was last week?s unemployment figures at 8:30 AM ET. They revealed that 259,000 new claims for unemployment benefits were filed last week. This was much lower than the 273,000 that was expected and a decline from the previous week?s 277,000 initial claims. This number indicates that the employment sector strengthened more than thought last week, making the data bad news for mortgage rates. Fortunately, this is only a weekly report, limiting the impact it has had on today?s mortgage rates.

Next up was May's New Home Sales report at 10:00 AM ET that showed a 6.0% decline in sales of newly constructed homes. The number of sales wasn?t far off from expectations, but an increase to April?s sales means the monthly drop between months was larger than forecasted. That would make the data slightly favorable for bonds and mortgage rates. Although, this report is considered to be of low importance to the markets so we have not seen a noticeable reaction to the news.

The final report of the day was May's Leading Economic Indicators (LEI), also at 10:00 AM. The Conference Board announced a 0.2% decline in the LEI when analysts were calling for a 0.2% rise. That means the indicators are predicting softer economic growth over the next several months. Since bonds tend to thrive in weaker economic conditions, this data is also favorable for rates. It just does not carry the importance to offset the British vote concerns in the bond market today.

Tomorrow has the two remaining releases, one of which is the most important report of the week. This would be May's Durable Goods Orders from the Commerce Department at 8:30 AM ET, giving us an indication of manufacturing sector strength. It tracks orders at U.S. factories for big-ticket items, or products that are expected to last three or more years such as electronics, appliances and airplanes. This data is known to be quite volatile from month to month and is expected to show a decline of 0.6% in new orders from April to May. A large decline would be the ideal scenario for the bond market and would hopefully lead to an improvement in mortgage pricing as it would indicate manufacturing sector weakness.

The University of Michigan will close out this week's data when they update their Index of Consumer Sentiment for May late tomorrow morning. This index measures consumer willingness to spend. If consumers are more comfortable with their own financial and employment situations, they are more apt to make large purchases in the near future, fueling economic growth. Accordingly, any consumer spending related data has the potential to affect bond trading and mortgage rates. A downward revision would be considered good news for bonds and rates. Forecasts are calling for little change from this month's preliminary reading of 94.3.

We can also expect to see a reaction to Britain?s vote later today and tomorrow morning. A vote for Britain to break away from the European Union will likely be taken as good news for bonds and the immediate reaction should be a bond rally and drop in mortgage rates. This is because many believe it will disrupt the global economy, making U.S. securities more appealing as a safe-haven. If the vote fails (Britain stays), we will probably see bond prices move lower, driving yields and mortgage rates higher since some of our recent gains are result of fears about the vote.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Lock if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Check the rates...www.WMRLoans.com - shop us against any lender.

Friday?s bond market has opened sharply higher as the markets react to Britain?s vote. The opposite reaction of a bond rally often is weakness in stocks and we are seeing plenty of it this morning. The Dow is currently down 376 points while the Nasdaq has lost 122 points. The bond market is currently up 50/32 (1.57%), which should improve this morning?s mortgage rates by approximately .375 of a discount point.

Well, the Brits did it. Surprising many in the financial world, Britain voted to break away from the European Union. That has caused turmoil in the global markets with stocks getting crushed in every relevant open exchange. This is great news for mortgage shoppers because scared stock investors usually shift funds into bonds for safety, hence the huge rally in U.S. bonds this morning. It also makes a Fed rate hike late next month highly unlikely. It also raises the possibility of them not acting the rest of the year.

There were two pieces of economic data posted this morning, but the Brexit news makes them irrelevant in today?s trading. May's Durable Goods Orders was first at 8:30 AM ET. The Commerce Department announced a 2.2% drop in new orders for big-ticket products such as electronics, appliances and airplanes. Analysts were expecting to see a decline 0.6%, so the news is favorable to bonds and mortgage rates. Even a secondary reading that excludes more volatile transportation-related orders (such as airplanes) came in softer than expected. The acceptable variance in this report is wider than most others because the data is known to be quite volatile from month to month, but we can still consider the data good news.

The last event of the week was the University of Michigan?s revised Index of Consumer Sentiment for May just before 10:00 AM ET. It showed a reading of 93.5 that was lower than forecasts of 94.0 and a decline from the initial reading of 94.3. This means surveyed consumers were a little less optimistic about their own financial situations than many had expected. Because waning confidence usually translates into weaker levels of consumer spending and softer economic growth, this report is also favorable for mortgage shoppers.

Overall, enjoy today?s bond rally and downward move in rates. Some analysts are already downplaying the news and predicting it won?t have nearly an impact on the global economy as some are claiming. The future will tell us if today?s move was justified or if it was an overreaction. I believe the news is favorable for bonds, but am having a hard time justifying the reaction in the markets, especially when considering the recent downward spiral in bond yields leading up to it. That said, today is a good day for mortgage shoppers. However, please proceed cautiously if still floating an interest rate because the cause of the bond rally has come and gone. We won?t see the economic impact of Britain?s decision for some time. That allows plenty of time for profit-taking in bonds and a general correction.

Next week is much lighter in terms of data and events that have the potential to affect mortgage rates. There are a couple of moderately important releases and one highly important release scheduled, but none come Monday. We may see weekend talk of Britain?s vote to carry into Monday?s trading and a rebound in stocks could help erase some of today?s gains. Look for details on next week?s calendar in Sunday evening?s weekly preview.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Monday?s bond market has opened in positive territory, extending Friday?s mega rally. Stocks remain in selling mode with the Dow down another 225 points while the Nasdaq has lost 66 points. The bond market is currently up 25/32 (1.47%), which should improve this morning?s mortgage rates by approximately .125 of a discount point from Friday?s early pricing. Bonds gave up some of their post-Brexit gains late Friday, so if your lender revised pricing higher intraday as a result, you should see a larger improvement in this morning?s rates.

There is nothing scheduled for release today that is relevant to mortgage rates. We are seeing the markets trade based almost exclusively on last week?s vote in Britain to break away from the European Union. Over the weekend theories developed that have some people believing other countries may follow suit, threatening the union altogether. That has helped fuel another day of stock selling and bond buying.

The rest of the week has only four pieces of monthly or quarterly economic data that we will be watching with one being considered highly important. However, there is good reason to believe that this data will not be affecting the markets nearly as much as it usually does do to the Britain/EU situation.

Tomorrow has two of the reports set for release. The first is the final reading to the 1st Quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at 8:30 AM ET tomorrow morning. The GDP is the sum of all products and services produced in the U.S. and is considered to be the best measurement of economic growth or contraction. However, this particular data is quite aged now (covers January through March) and will likely have little impact on the bond market or mortgage pricing unless it varies greatly from previous readings. Market participants are looking more towards next month's release of the current quarter's initial GDP reading. Last month's first revision showed a 0.8% annual rate of growth in the GDP. Tomorrow?s revision is expected to show a 1.0% rate of expansion, meaning the economy was slightly stronger than previously thought during the quarter. A larger increase in the GDP would be considered negative for rates as it means stronger economic activity.

June's Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) will be posted at 10:00 AM ET tomorrow. This data is relevant to the financial markets because it measures consumer willingness to spend. If consumers are more confident about their own financial and employment situations, they are more apt to make large purchases in the near future, fueling economic growth. If it shows a sizable increase in confidence from last month, we can expect to see a negative reaction in bonds and mortgage rates. Current forecasts are calling for a reading of 93.1, up from last month's 92.6 reading. The lower the reading, the better the news it is for bonds and mortgage rates.

Overall, I am expecting to see another active week in the financial and mortgage markets. The most important day could be any day due to stock movement or overseas news, particularly regarding other countries that may consider following Britain?s lead to break away from the European Union. Friday has the most important report in the ISM release and it also has an early close in the bond market ahead of the Independence Day Holiday. Still, because of current events and the impact they could have on everything from Fed moves, global economics and stocks just to name a few, it would be highly prudent to maintain contact with your mortgage professional if still floating an interest rate.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[rivermobster]

Monday?s bond market has opened in positive territory, extending Friday?s mega rally. Stocks remain in selling mode with the Dow down another 225 points while the Nasdaq has lost 66 points. The bond market is currently up 25/32 (1.47%), which should improve this morning?s mortgage rates by approximately .125 of a discount point from Friday?s early pricing. Bonds gave up some of their post-Brexit gains late Friday, so if your lender revised pricing higher intraday as a result, you should see a larger improvement in this morning?s rates.

There is nothing scheduled for release today that is relevant to mortgage rates. We are seeing the markets trade based almost exclusively on last week?s vote in Britain to break away from the European Union. Over the weekend theories developed that have some people believing other countries may follow suit, threatening the union altogether. That has helped fuel another day of stock selling and bond buying.

The rest of the week has only four pieces of monthly or quarterly economic data that we will be watching with one being considered highly important. However, there is good reason to believe that this data will not be affecting the markets nearly as much as it usually does do to the Britain/EU situation.

Tomorrow has two of the reports set for release. The first is the final reading to the 1st Quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at 8:30 AM ET tomorrow morning. The GDP is the sum of all products and services produced in the U.S. and is considered to be the best measurement of economic growth or contraction. However, this particular data is quite aged now (covers January through March) and will likely have little impact on the bond market or mortgage pricing unless it varies greatly from previous readings. Market participants are looking more towards next month's release of the current quarter's initial GDP reading. Last month's first revision showed a 0.8% annual rate of growth in the GDP. Tomorrow?s revision is expected to show a 1.0% rate of expansion, meaning the economy was slightly stronger than previously thought during the quarter. A larger increase in the GDP would be considered negative for rates as it means stronger economic activity.

June's Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) will be posted at 10:00 AM ET tomorrow. This data is relevant to the financial markets because it measures consumer willingness to spend. If consumers are more confident about their own financial and employment situations, they are more apt to make large purchases in the near future, fueling economic growth. If it shows a sizable increase in confidence from last month, we can expect to see a negative reaction in bonds and mortgage rates. Current forecasts are calling for a reading of 93.1, up from last month's 92.6 reading. The lower the reading, the better the news it is for bonds and mortgage rates.

Overall, I am expecting to see another active week in the financial and mortgage markets. The most important day could be any day due to stock movement or overseas news, particularly regarding other countries that may consider following Britain?s lead to break away from the European Union. Friday has the most important report in the ISM release and it also has an early close in the bond market ahead of the Independence Day Holiday. Still, because of current events and the impact they could have on everything from Fed moves, global economics and stocks just to name a few, it would be highly prudent to maintain contact with your mortgage professional if still floating an interest rate.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

Hey Scott. Escrow is open. Inspection was completed on Saturday. Nothing major was found. Good luck!

Many thanks for helping my friend out. She told me her house payment will be less that what she was previously paying for rent. :thumbsup

 

[Tamalewagon]

Hey Scott. Escrow is open. Inspection was completed on Saturday. Nothing major was found. Good luck!

Many thanks for helping my friend out. She told me her house payment will be less that what she was previously paying for rent. :thumbsup

Thanks again for the referral Joe. I've got Holly well taken care of. :thumbsup

 

[Tamalewagon]

Tuesday?s bond market has opened in negative territory as Brexit?s effect on the markets wane for the time being. Stocks are contributing to the early losses also with sizable gains in the major indexes. The Dow is currently up 197 points while the Nasdaq has gained 76 points. The bond market is currently down 8/32 (1.47%), but due to strength late yesterday we should see little change from Monday?s morning mortgage rates.

There were two pieces of economic data posted this morning, neither of which was considered highly important. The first came at 8:30 AM ET when the second revision to the 1st Quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was posted. It came in at up 1.1%, slightly exceeding expectations of a 1.0% annual rate of growth and up from the previous estimate of 0.8%. This means that the economy was a little stronger during the first three months of the year than previously thought. That technically makes the data bad news for bonds and mortgage rates, but since this data is pretty aged now and analysts are more interested in the current quarter?s growth numbers that will be posted next month, it has had no impact on today?s trading.

June's Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) was released at 10:00 AM ET. The Conference Board announced a reading of 98.0 that greatly exceeded forecasts of 93.1. It was also a large jump from May?s revised 92.4 reading, indicating that surveyed consumers were much more optimistic about their own financial situations this month than was expected. Because strengthening confidence usually translates into higher levels of consumer spending that fuels economic growth, we should consider this data negative for mortgage rates.

May's Personal Income and Outlays data is scheduled for release Wednesday at 8:30 AM ET. This report gives us an indication of consumer ability to spend and current spending activity. They are important because consumer spending makes up over two-thirds of the U.S. economy. If consumer income is rising, they have more money to spend each month. Analysts are expecting to see an increase of 0.3% in income and also a 0.3% rise in the spending portion of the report. Smaller increases in both of these readings would be considered good news for the bond market and mortgage rates.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Thursday?s bond market has opened in positive territory, recovering some of yesterday?s afternoon losses. The major stock indexes are showing minor gains with the Dow up 34 points and the Nasdaq up 1 point. The bond market is currently up 9/32 (1.48%), which should keep this morning?s mortgage rates at yesterday?s levels. Many lenders revised pricing higher late Wednesday as bonds slid into closing. If your lender did make an intraday increase, you should see an improvement in this morning?s pricing of approximately the same amount.

Last week?s unemployment numbers were today?s only relevant economic news, showing that 268,000 new claims for unemployment benefits were filed. This was an increase from the previous week?s revised 258,000 initial claims and was a bit higher than the 265,000 that was expected. The numbers hint that the employment sector softened last week, making the data favorable for bonds and mortgage rates. Unfortunately, this is a pretty minor piece of data because it?s a weekly report, so its impact on today?s mortgage pricing has been minimal.

Tomorrow also has only one economic report that we will be watching, but it is much more important to the financial and mortgage markets than today?s report was. The Institute of Supply Management (ISM) will post their manufacturing index for June at 10:00 AM ET tomorrow morning. This index measures manufacturer sentiment by surveying trade executives on current business conditions. May's reading that was posted last month came in at 51.3. A reading above 50 means that more surveyed executives felt business improved during the month than those who felt it had worsened. Analysts are expecting a reading of 51.5, indicating slight improvement in manufacturer sentiment. Good news for the bond market and mortgage rates would be a decline in the index, signaling worsening conditions in the manufacturing sector. This is the week's most important report and is watched closely because it is the first piece of data that tracks the previous month's activity.

It is also worth noting tomorrow brings us an early close in the bond market ahead of the Independence Day holiday. Stocks should be open for a full day of trading while bonds will close at 2:00 PM ET. All the markets will be close Monday and will reopen Tuesday for regular trading hours.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Fridays bond market initially opened well in positive territory but stronger than expected economic news late this morning helped to erase those early gains. The major stock indexes are showing moderate improvements with the Dow up 67 points and the Nasdaq up 31 points. The bond market is currently up 2/32 (1.46%), which should keep this mornings mortgage rates slightly better than yesterday morning. Most of that improvement is a result of strength late yesterday and not this mornings open. Therefore, if your lender improved pricing Thursday afternoon, you may not see a change this morning.

Todays only relevant data came at 10:00 AM ET when the Institute of Supply Management (ISM) released their manufacturing index for June. It came in at 53.2, exceeding expectations of 51.5. This indicates that more manufacturing executives felt business improved during the month than many had thought. Since that is a sign of manufacturing sector strength, the news is negative for bonds and mortgage rates. The reaction also means the markets are paying attention to economic reports again instead of Brexit-related issues.

We have an early close in the bond market today ahead of Mondays Independence Day holiday. Stocks should be open for a full day of trading while bonds will close at 2:00 PM ET. These long weekends sometimes lead to additional volatility right before they begin as investors adjust holdings to protect themselves from events over the holiday period. This has been a pretty active week in the financial and mortgage markets, so it should not be a surprise if we see some movement as the early closing nears. If we do see it, it should not be anything too drastic.

Next week doesn?t have a high number of reports scheduled for release, but they do include the FOMC minutes and the almighty monthly Employment report. There is a minor piece of data scheduled for release after the markets reopen Tuesday morning. Look for details on it and the rest of the week?s activities in Sunday evening?s weekly preview.

We would like to take this opportunity to wish all of our readers a happy and safe holiday!

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Lock if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Tuesday?s bond market has opened well in positive territory as the global bond markets continue to rally. Stocks are reacting in sync with the Dow down 110 points and the Nasdaq down 50 points. The bond market is currently up 25/32, but we should only see an improvement in this morning?s mortgage rates of approximately .125 of a discount point from Friday?s early levels. The financial and mortgage markets were closed yesterday for the Independence Day holiday.

May's Factory Orders report was posted late this morning, giving us a measure of manufacturing sector strength. The Commerce Department announced a 1.0% decline in new orders, nearly matching forecasts of a 0.9% drop. This means the manufacturing sector softened in May, but since it came as no surprise it has had little impact on today?s mortgage pricing.

Tomorrow morning has no relevant economic data set for release, but the afternoon has the minutes from the last FOMC meeting. There is a possibility of the markets reacting to them following their 2:00 PM ET release. I don't believe that they will reveal anything surprising from the last FOMC meeting and during Chairperson Yellen's press conference that followed. Still, market participants will be looking for any indication of when the Fed will make their next rate increase that is currently expected sometime this year. The minutes will tell us how members voted for related motions and could cause more volatility in the markets if there is anything unexpected in them. It is worth noting that this meeting took place before Britain?s vote to leave the European Union.

Overall, the most important day of the week is Friday due to the monthly Employment report, but the stock markets will also heavily affect trading if they rally or go into a sell-off during the week. I believe we are in for another active week for rates and the markets. Although, likely not as volatile as we saw last week. Still, it would be prudent to maintain contact with your mortgage professional if still floating an interest rate.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Wednesday?s bond market has opened relatively flat despite sizable stock losses. The Dow is currently showing a loss of 120 points while the Nasdaq is down 24 points. The bond market is currently up 1/32 (1.37%), which should keep this morning?s mortgage rates at yesterday?s early levels.

The minutes from the last FOMC meeting will be released later today. There is a possibility of the markets reacting to them following their 2:00 PM ET release. I don't believe that they will reveal anything surprising from the last FOMC meeting and during Chairperson Yellen's press conference that followed. Still, market participants will be looking for any indication of when the Fed will make their next rate increase that is currently expected sometime this year. The minutes will tell us how members voted for related motions and could cause more volatility in the markets if there is anything unexpected in them. It is worth noting that this meeting took place before Britain?s vote to leave the European Union.

Tomorrow morning has two pieces of economic data scheduled to be posted. The first is June?s ADP Employment report at 8:15 AM ET. It has the potential to cause some movement in the markets if it shows much stronger or weaker numbers. This report tracks changes in private-sector jobs of the company's clients that use them for payroll processing. While it does draw attention, it is my opinion that it is overrated and is not a true reflection of the broader employment picture. It also is not very accurate in predicting results of the monthly government report that follows a couple days later. Still, because we sometimes see a noticeable reaction to the report, it is on this week's calendar. It is expected to show 152,000 new payrolls. Ideally, the bond market would prefer to see a much smaller increase.

The other report is last week's unemployment update at 8:30 AM ET tomorrow. It is expected to show that 268,000 new claims for unemployment benefits were filed last week, the same as the previous week. This report usually doesn't cause much movement in the markets or mortgage rates unless it shows a significant jump or drop in initial claims for benefits. The higher the number of claims, the better the news it is for bonds and mortgage rates.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Thursday?s bond market has opened in negative territory as investors capture some profits before tomorrow?s major economic news. Stocks are showing moderate gains with the Dow up 53 points and the Nasdaq up 28 points. The bond market is currently down 14/32 (1.41%), which should push this morning?s mortgage rates higher by approximately.125 of a discount point.

Yesterday?s afternoon release of the FOMC minutes didn?t reveal many surprises. They did show that there was consensus amongst members that recent employment data and the potential Brexit vote bring uncertainty to our economy and therefore, monetary policy. In other words, they acknowledged that there is concern about future economic growth due to recent events. That should not have been a surprise to anyone, so its impact on the bond and mortgage markets was minimal.

The first of this morning?s two economic reports was June?s ADP Employment report at 8:15 AM ET. It revealed an increase of 172,000 private-sector payrolls, exceeding forecasts of 152,000 by a decent margin. This number indicates strength in the employment sector, making the data unfavorable for bonds and mortgage rates.

We also got last week's unemployment figures early this morning. They showed that 254,000 new claims for unemployment benefits were filed last week, down from the previous week?s revised total of 270,000. Analysts were expecting to see 268,000 initial claims, so the data points towards a stronger employment sector last week. That makes this data negative for mortgage rates also.

Tomorrow brings us arguably the single most important report we see each month. The Labor Department will post June's unemployment rate, number of new payrolls added or lost and average hourly earnings at 8:30 AM ET tomorrow morning. These are considered to be very important readings of the employment sector and can have a huge impact on the financial markets. The ideal scenario for the bond market is rising unemployment, a large decline in payrolls and no change in earnings. Weaker than expected readings should help boost bond prices and lower mortgage rates because weaker economic conditions make bonds more attractive to investors. However, stronger than expected readings could be extremely detrimental to mortgage pricing. Analysts are expecting to see the unemployment rate rise .1% to 4.8%, with 175,000 jobs added and a 0.2% rise in earnings.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Friday?s bond market has opened in negative territory following a much stronger than forecasted payroll number for June. Stocks are showing sizable gains with the Dow up 156 points and the Nasdaq up 46 points. The bond market is currently down 5/32 (1.40%), which should keep this morning?s mortgage rates higher very close to yesterday?s levels.

This morning?s key economic data gave us surprising results, although you wouldn?t know it by the bond market reaction. June?s Employment report showed that 287,000 new jobs were added to the economy last month, greatly exceeding expectations of 175,000. A number like that usually has a significant impact on the markets and mortgage rates, but we have not seen that in bonds yet.

The report actually had some favorable pieces to it. The unemployment rate moved from May?s 4.7% to 4.9% last month when analysts were calling for 4.8%. And average earnings rose only 0.1% compared to the 0.2% that was expected. Both of these figures are technically good news for bonds, but not good enough to offset the spike in payrolls. I believe we are seeing a muted response to the news partly because traders were expecting a rebound after May?s dismal numbers and global issues such as Brexit and others that are favorable for bonds are still in the forefront.

I would not be surprised to see some intraday movement in bond prices and possibly mortgage rates as investors digest this report and its potential impact on the Fed?s upcoming monetary policy decisions. We should also watch the major stock indexes as a noticeable move from them may carry into bonds before the end of the day. If stocks extend their current gains, we could see pressure build in bonds that may lead to an upward revision to rates. On the other hand, a retreat in stocks may be enough to fuel a slight improvement in rates later today.

Next week appears to be a pretty active week with a few pieces of important economic data, a couple of potentially influential Treasury auctions and a bunch public speaking engagements by current Fed members. There is nothing set for release Monday that we need to worry about with exception to a couple of Fed speeches. Look for details on next week?s activities in Sunday evening?s weekly preview.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[rivermobster]

Friday?s bond market has opened in negative territory following a much stronger than forecasted payroll number for June. Stocks are showing sizable gains with the Dow up 156 points and the Nasdaq up 46 points. The bond market is currently down 5/32 (1.40%), which should keep this morning?s mortgage rates higher very close to yesterday?s levels.

This morning?s key economic data gave us surprising results, although you wouldn?t know it by the bond market reaction. June?s Employment report showed that 287,000 new jobs were added to the economy last month, greatly exceeding expectations of 175,000. A number like that usually has a significant impact on the markets and mortgage rates, but we have not seen that in bonds yet.

The report actually had some favorable pieces to it. The unemployment rate moved from May?s 4.7% to 4.9% last month when analysts were calling for 4.8%. And average earnings rose only 0.1% compared to the 0.2% that was expected. Both of these figures are technically good news for bonds, but not good enough to offset the spike in payrolls. I believe we are seeing a muted response to the news partly because traders were expecting a rebound after May?s dismal numbers and global issues such as Brexit and others that are favorable for bonds are still in the forefront.

I would not be surprised to see some intraday movement in bond prices and possibly mortgage rates as investors digest this report and its potential impact on the Fed?s upcoming monetary policy decisions. We should also watch the major stock indexes as a noticeable move from them may carry into bonds before the end of the day. If stocks extend their current gains, we could see pressure build in bonds that may lead to an upward revision to rates. On the other hand, a retreat in stocks may be enough to fuel a slight improvement in rates later today.

Next week appears to be a pretty active week with a few pieces of important economic data, a couple of potentially influential Treasury auctions and a bunch public speaking engagements by current Fed members. There is nothing set for release Monday that we need to worry about with exception to a couple of Fed speeches. Look for details on next week?s activities in Sunday evening?s weekly preview.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

Dude...

So while I was talking to you on the phone, waiting for Holly and Anthony to show up, little did i know, they were already inside the restaurant, wondering who the fuck i was talking to for so long!

So...

They send the restaurant owner out to harass me, he tells me, I have to leave. I can't just sit parked in front of his restaurant if I'm not gonna spend any money. That's when I told you, I need to leave and get off the phone (cause I'm thinking he is serious!!!).

When I get off the phone he tells me...

I was just kidding! Your friends are inside, and they wanted me to come get you so they can eat! lol

Pretty funny. I got shit from them all, the whole night.

Thanks for all of your help on this deal. It is much appreciated. :tbi

 

[Tamalewagon]

Dude...

So while I was talking to you on the phone, waiting for Holly and Anthony to show up, little did i know, they were already inside the restaurant, wondering who the fuck i was talking to for so long!

So...

They send the restaurant owner out to harass me, he tells me, I have to leave. I can't just sit parked in front of his restaurant if I'm not gonna spend any money. That's when I told you, I need to leave and get off the phone (cause I'm thinking he is serious!!!).

When I get off the phone he tells me...

I was just kidding! Your friends are inside, and they wanted me to come get you so they can eat! lol

Pretty funny. I got shit from them all, the whole night.

Thanks for all of your help on this deal. It is much appreciated. :tbi

Classic. I'd give you shit...just because.

 

[Tamalewagon]

Mondays bond market has opened in negative territory, erasing Fridays late improvement that came as news broke about the attempted coup in Turkey. Stocks are fairly calm this morning with the Dow and Nasdaq both showing gains of approximately 22 points each. The bond market is currently down 7/32 (1.58%), but due to strength late Friday we should see little change in this mornings mortgage rates.

There is nothing of importance being posted today and the rest of the week brings us only three pieces of moderately important economic data that have the potential to influence mortgage rates. We are also still in corporate earnings season, so any surprises in those releases could affect stock and bond trading, leading to changes in mortgage rates. And we can?t forget the Republican convention as a possible influence.

Junes New Home Sales report will start this weeks activities at 10:00 AM ET tomorrow. This Commerce Department report gives us a measurement of housing sector strength. Analysts are expecting it to show little change from May?s sales of newly constructed homes, indicating that the new home portion of the housing sector was flat last month. Ideally, a large decline in sales would be considered good news for bonds, but since this data tracks only a small percentage of all home sales it usually has little impact on the bond market and mortgage rates unless it varies greatly from forecasts. The Existing Home Sales report covers most of the home sales in the U.S.

Overall, I suspect we will see a calmer week than the past couple but still have a couple days with changes to mortgage pricing. No single day stands out as the most important day of the week and the least active day will probably be Friday. Despite the lack of key economic data or any events that clearly will cause volatility, it still would be prudent to maintain contact with you mortgage professional as momentum can pick up at any time.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Tuesdays bond market has opened in positive territory despite stronger than predicted housing news. The stock markets are showing minor losses of 21 points in the Dow and 17 points in the Nasdaq. The bond market is currently up 5/32 (1.56%), which should improve this mornings mortgage rates by almost .125 of a discount point.

Junes Housing Starts was todays only relevant economic data. The Commerce Department announced a 4.8% increase in new home groundbreaking last month, exceeding expectations. This increase is a sign that the new home portion of the housing sector may be stronger than many had thought. It is worth noting that downward revisions to May and Aprils starts is helping to offset the unexpected rise in June.

Tomorrow has nothing of importance scheduled for release. Therefore, look for stocks to be the biggest influence on bonds and possibly mortgage rates. Unless something unexpected happens, it should be a pretty calm day for mortgage rates.

The rest of the week could be the same. We only have two more pieces of monthly economic data set for release with neither of them being considered highly important. If stocks remain flat, it is relatively safe to assume bonds and mortgage rates will follow suit the next couple of days.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Wednesdays bond market has opened in negative territory, continuing its recent rollercoaster ride. Stocks are showing early gains with the Dow up 15 points and the Nasdaq up 31 points. The bond market is currently down 10/32 (1.59%), but strength late yesterday should prevent a change in this morning?s mortgage rates.

There is nothing of importance scheduled for release today, but tomorrow has three minor pieces of data. The first is last weeks unemployment figures at 8:30 AM ET that are expected to show 265,000 new claims for unemployment benefits were filed. This would be an increase from the previous weeks 254,000 initial filings. Since rising claims is a sign of a weakening employment sector, the higher the number the better the news it is for mortgage shoppers. However, because this is only a weekly report, it usually takes a significant variance from forecasts for the number to directly impact mortgage rates.

Junes Existing Home Sales from the National Association of Realtors will be posted at 10:00 AM ET tomorrow. This report also gives us a measurement of housing sector strength and mortgage credit demand. Current forecasts are calling for a small decline in sales from May's totals. A drop in sales would be considered good news for bonds and mortgage rates because a weakening housing sector makes broader economic growth more difficult. However, unless this data varies greatly from forecasts it probably will lead to only a minor change in mortgage rates.

Also late tomorrow morning will be the release of June's Leading Economic Indicators (LEI). This Conference Board index attempts to measure economic activity over the next three to six months. While it is not a factual report, it still is considered to be of moderate importance to the bond market. It is expected to show a 0.3% increase, meaning it is predicting minor gains in economic growth over the next few months. A large decline in the index would be good news for the bond and mortgage markets.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

www.wmrloans.com

30 day lock pricing is shown. 45, 60 and longer lock terms are available.

 

[Tamalewagon]

Thursday?s bond market has opened in negative territory again despite an uneventful morning in stocks. The major stock indexes are mixed with the Dow down 38 points and the Nasdaq up 1 points. The bond market is currently down 9/32 (1.60%), but I believe we will see only a slight increase in this morning?s mortgage rates.

The first of today?s three economic releases was last week?s unemployment figures at 8:30 AM ET. They showed that 253,000 new claims for unemployment benefits were filed last week, down slightly from the previous week?s 254,000. Analysts were expecting to see an increase to 265,000 initial filings, meaning the employment sector appears to have been stronger last week than many had thought. That makes the data bad news for mortgage rates.

We had two reports posted at 10:00 AM ET this morning. The National Association of Realtors announced that existing home resales rose 1.1% last month. That was a little larger gain than was expected and pushed sales to their best level since February 2007. Because a strengthening housing sector makes broader economic growth more likely, this is bad news for bonds and mortgage pricing.

Lastly, June's Leading Economic Indicators (LEI) came in with a 0.3% increase that matched expectations. The rise means the indicators are predicting economic growth over the next several months. This is a minor report that showed no surprise, so it has had no impact on today?s trading or mortgage pricing.

Tomorrow has nothing of importance scheduled for release, so it is fairly safe to assume that we could have a pretty calm day for mortgage rates. If stocks make a major move up or down, we should see bonds and mortgage rates react accordingly. But unless we get something unexpected, I would not be surprised to see the week come to close pretty quietly.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Fridays bond market has opened in negative territory again as the morning weakness trend continues. The major stock indexes are calm but mixed again also with the Dow down 8 points and the Nasdaq up 6 points. The bond market is currently down 7/32 (1.58%), but strength late yesterday should prevent an increase in todays mortgage rates. If your lender improved rates intraday late yesterday, you should see an increase in this mornings pricing of the same amount.

There is nothing of importance scheduled for release today, so we can turn towards stocks as the likely source of bond market and mortgage rate direction as the week comes to close. If stocks move higher from current levels, more pressure may build in bonds, leading to an intraday day increase in rates. On the other hand, if the major indexes weaken, bonds and mortgage shoppers could benefit.

Next week is pretty active in terms of scheduled reports and events that may influence mortgage rates. There is a handful or monthly and quarterly reports set for release, although none are considered to be highly important. In addition to the economic data, we also have the two-day FOMC meeting and a couple of Treasury auctions that have the potential to come into play.

Monday is the only day of the week with nothing scheduled to take place. Therefore, we can expect weekend news and pre-FOMC positioning to have the biggest impact on Monday?s trading and mortgage pricing. Look for details about next week?s calendar in Sunday evening?s weekly preview.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Monday?s bond market has opened up slightly as stocks start the week in negative ground. The major indexes are showing moderate losses of 65 points in the Dow and 3 points in the Nasdaq. The bond market is currently up 3/32 (1.55%), which should keep this morning?s mortgage rates at Friday morning?s levels.

There is nothing of importance scheduled for today. In fact, it is the only day in the busy week that has nothing set that is relevant to mortgage pricing. The rest of the week brings us the release of six economic reports that may impact rates with one of them considered to be highly influential. In addition to the data, there is also another FOMC meeting that certainly has the potential to cause chaos in the markets and a couple of Treasury auctions that we will be watching.

June's New Home Sales report will kick off this week?s calendar at 10:00 AM ET tomorrow. This Commerce Department report gives us another measurement of housing sector strength. Analysts are expecting it to show an increase in sales of newly constructed homes, indicating that the new home portion of the housing sector strengthened a little last month. That would be considered negative news for bonds, but since this data tracks only a small percentage of all home sales it usually has little impact on the bond market and mortgage rates unless it varies greatly from forecasts. Last week?s Existing Home Sales report covers most of the home sales in the U.S.

Also late tomorrow morning, the Conference Board will release their Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) for July. This index measures consumer sentiment, giving us an idea of consumer willingness to spend. If consumers are more confident in their own financial and employment situations, they are apt to make large purchases in the near future. This is important because consumer spending makes up such a large portion of our economy. If the CCI reading is weaker than expected, meaning that consumers were less confident than thought and likely will delay making a large personal purchase, we may see bond prices rise and mortgage rates drop Tuesday morning. Current forecasts are calling for a reading of 96.0 which would be a weaker reading than June's 98.0 and indicate consumers are a little less comfortable with their finances than they were last month.

Overall, I am expecting to see a very active week in the financial and mortgage markets. The most active day will probably be Wednesday due to the Durable Goods report and FOMC meeting, but it is worth noting that Friday?s GDP report can also cause plenty of volatility in the markets itself. There is little doubt that this is going to be an important week for mortgage rates, so it would be prudent to maintain contact with your mortgage professional if still floating an interest rate and closing in the near future.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Tuesday?s bond market has opened down slightly following stronger than expected economic news. Stocks are mixed with the Dow down 7 points and the Nasdaq up 19 points. The bond market is currently down 2/32 (1.58%), which should keep this morning?s mortgage rates close to yesterday?s morning levels. A little weakness late yesterday could cause some lenders to pricing up slightly, but there should not be a noticeable change in rates.

There were two moderately important reports posted late this morning. The first was June's New Home Sales report from the Commerce Department that showed a 3.5% jump in sales of newly constructed homes last month. This was a larger increase than was expected and a sizable upward revision to May?s sales put the number of transactions much higher than analysts had forecasted. That means that the new home portion of the housing sector was stronger than many had thought the past two months, making the data negative for bonds and mortgage rates.

Also at 10:00 AM ET, the Conference Board announced their Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) for July stood at 97.3. This was nearly unchanged from June?s revised 97.4 and indicates consumers sentiment levels remained flat this month. Good news would have been a decline because waning confidence usually means weaker levels of consumer spending. But the fact we saw little change makes the news neutral for the mortgage market.

There are also two Treasury auctions that are worth watching this week. 5-year Notes will be sold today and 7-year Notes on Thursday. Neither of these sales will directly impact mortgage pricing, but they can influence general bond market sentiment. If the sales go poorly, we could see broader selling in the bond market that leads to upward revisions to mortgage rates. On the other hand, strong sales usually make bonds more attractive to investors, bringing more funds into the bond market. The buying of bonds that follows translates into lower mortgage rates. Results of today?s sale will be posted at 1:00 PM ET, so look for any reaction to come during early afternoon hours.

The Commerce Department will also post June's Durable Goods Orders at 8:30 AM ET tomorrow. Current forecasts are calling for a decline in new orders of 1.0% from May to June. This data gives us an indication of manufacturing sector strength by tracking orders at U.S. factories for big-ticket items, or products that are expected to last three or more years. A much stronger than expected number may lead to higher mortgage rates tomorrow morning because it would point towards economic strength. If it reveals a considerably larger decline in new orders, mortgage rates should move lower. It should be noted though that this data is known to be extremely volatile from month to month, so a minor difference between forecasts and the actual reading may not move the markets or mortgage rates.

Tomorrow afternoon has the adjournment of the FOMC meeting that began today. This is not a meeting that will be followed by a press conference with Fed Chair Yellen nor is it expected to yield a change to key interest rates. Many analysts believe the Fed will make their next increase to key short-term interest rates late this year, not this week. Anything in the post-meeting statement that either confirms or contradicts that theory will cause volatility in the markets. The meeting will adjourn at 2:00 PM ET, so any reaction will come during mid-afternoon hours tomorrow.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Wednesdays bond market has opened in positive territory following weaker than predicted manufacturing data. The stock markets are showing moderate gains with the Dow up 59 points and the Nasdaq up 36 points. The bond market is currently up 4/32 (1.55%), which should improve this mornings mortgage rates slightly.

Yesterdays 5-year Treasury Note auction did not go very well. Several benchmarks we use to gauge investor demand showed below average interest in the securities. Fortunately, we did not see much of a reaction in the bond market after results were posted. The 7-year Note sale will be held tomorrow, but yesterdays sale results don?t give us too much to be optimistic about.

This mornings only relevant economic data was an important manufacturing report from the Commerce Department. They announced at 8:30 AM ET that Durable Goods Orders fell 4.0% last month. That was much weaker than the 1.0% drop that was expected, indicating manufacturing sector weakness. Even a secondary reading that excludes more volatile and costly transportation-related items such as airplane orders, fell 0.5% when analysts were calling for a 0.2% increase. Because bonds tend to thrive in weaker economic conditions, these numbers were good news for the bond market and mortgage rates.

We also have todays adjournment of the two-day FOMC meeting to deal with. This is not a meeting that will be followed by a press conference with Fed Chair Yellen nor is it expected to yield a change to key interest rates. Many analysts believe the Fed will make their next increase to key short-term interest rates later this year, not this week. Anything in the post-meeting statement that either confirms or contradicts that theory will cause volatility in the markets. The meeting will adjourn at 2:00 PM ET, so any reaction will come during mid-afternoon hours.

There is only one weekly report and the 7-year Treasury Note auction to watch tomorrow, but they will be addressed in this afternoons update. We will update this report shortly after the markets have an opportunity to react to this afternoon?s FOMC results.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

WEDNESDAY AFTERNOON UPDATE:
This week?s FOMC meeting has adjourned with no change to key short-term interest rates, which was widely expected. In the post-meeting statement the Fed indicated that the economy has grown moderately since their last meeting and that the employment sector has strengthened. The comments appear to mean that they are still planning on making a move in the near future and that rates will be boosted gradually.

Overall, the statement failed to bring any significant surprises and hasn?t caused much of a change in predictions on the Fed?s path for monetary policy. Stocks are a little weaker than morning levels, currently mixed with the Dow down 10 points and the Nasdaq up 27 points. The bond market has moved higher, now up 16/32 (1.50%). This is enough of a move for many lenders to improve rates approximately .125 of a discount point before the end of the day.

Yesterday?s 5-year Treasury Note auction did not go very well. Several benchmarks we use to gauge investor demand showed below average interest in the securities. Fortunately, we did not see much of a reaction in the bond market after results were posted. The 7-year Note sale will be held tomorrow, but yesterday?s sale results don?t give us too much to be optimistic about.

This morning?s only relevant economic data was an important manufacturing report from the Commerce Department. They announced at 8:30 AM ET that Durable Goods Orders fell 4.0% last month. That was much weaker than the 1.0% drop that was expected, indicating manufacturing sector weakness. Even a secondary reading that excludes more volatile and costly transportation-related items such as airplane orders, fell 0.5% when analysts were calling for a 0.2% increase. Because bonds tend to thrive in weaker economic conditions, these numbers were good news for the bond market and mortgage rates.

Tomorrow?s only relevant event besides the 7-year Note auction is weekly unemployment update from the Labor Department at 8:30 AM. They are expected to say that 260,000 new claims for unemployment benefits were filed last week, up from the previous week?s 253,000. Ideally, we want to see a large increase in initial claims because rising claims indicate a weakening employment sector. This report usually takes a wide variance from expectations for it to have an impact on mortgage rates since it is only a weekly update.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Thursdays bond market has opened in negative territory, giving back some of yesterdays late rally. The major stock indexes are mixed again with the Dow down 27 points and the Nasdaq up 9 points. The bond market is currently down 8/32 (1.52%), which should leave this morning?s mortgage rates approximately .125 of a discount point lower than yesterday?s pre-FOMC adjournment pricing.

Last weeks unemployment numbers were posted early this morning. They showed that 266,000 new claims for unemployment benefits were filed last week, up from the previous week?s revised total of 252,000. Analysts were expecting to see 260,000 initial filings, meaning the employment sector was weaker than many had thought last week. That makes the data good news for bonds and mortgage rates. Unfortunately, this is only a weekly update so its impact on todays trading and mortgage pricing has been minimal.

We also have the 7-year Treasury Note sale to watch later today. Results will be posted at 1:00 PM ET, so any reaction will come during early afternoon trading. Tuesday?s 5-year Note sale didn?t go too well, leaving us little to be optimistic about today. If there was a strong demand for the securities, we could see bond prices rise and mortgage rates possibly move slightly lower this afternoon.

There are three relevant economic reports set for release tomorrow, including a key measurement of economic growth. The preliminary reading of the 2nd Quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP) will be released at 8:30 AM ET. This index is considered to be the benchmark indicator of economic growth or weakness. It is the total of all goods and services that are produced in the U.S. and usually has a great deal of influence on the financial markets. This reading is arguably the single most important report we get regularly. Current forecasts are estimating that the economy grew at a 2.6% annual rate during the second quarter, rebounding from the first quarter's 1.1% annual rate. A stronger rate of growth should hurt bond prices, leading to higher mortgage rates tomorrow. But a much smaller than expected reading will likely fuel a bond market rally and push mortgage pricing lower since it would indicate the economy was not as strong as many had thought.

Also at 8:30 AM will be the 2nd Quarter Employment Cost Index (ECI) that tracks employer costs for wages and benefits. This release will give us a measurement of wage-inflation. If it shows a large increase, we may see wage inflation concerns rise as employers will need to pass those increases into the pricing of their products and services. That would be bad news for bonds and mortgage shoppers. A smaller than expected increase would be good news for the bond market and mortgage pricing. Current forecasts are showing a rise of 0.6%.

The weeks calendar closes with Julys University of Michigan Index of Consumer Sentiment just before 10:00 AM ET that will help us measure consumer optimism about their own financial situations. This data is considered relevant because rising consumer confidence usually translates into higher levels of spending that adds fuel to economic growth and is looked at as bad news for bonds. Tomorrow's release is an update to the preliminary reading we saw two weeks ago, so unless we see a drastic revision to the preliminary estimate of 89.5, I think the markets will probably shrug off this news.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Friday?s bond market has opened in positive territory following the release of a much weaker than forecasted key economic reading. Stocks are reacting negatively to the news with the Dow down 80 points and the Nasdaq down 9 points. The bond market is currently up 6/32 (1.48%), which should improve this morning?s mortgage rates by approximately .125 of a discount point.

Yesterday?s 7-year Treasury Note auction went better than Tuesday?s 5-year Note sale. Several benchmarks that we use to gauge investor demand in the securities showed above average interest. That is fairly good news for the broader bond market, but failed to have much of an impact on afternoon trading yesterday.

The first of this morning?s three economic releases was the most important of the group and one of the key pieces of data we regularly see. The preliminary reading of the 2nd Quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP) showed that the economy grew at a 1.2% annual rate during the 2nd quarter, falling well short of expectations. Analysts were predicting a 2.6% rate of growth, meaning the economy was not nearly as strong during the April through June months as thought. It is also worth noting that the 1st Quarter GDP was revised downward 0.3% to a 0.8% annual rate. These readings are very good news for bonds and mortgage rates because bonds are more appealing to investors and tend to thrive during weaker economic conditions. The news should also make a Fed rate hike in September less likely.

Also early this morning was the release of the 2nd Quarter Employment Cost Index (ECI) that tracks employer costs for wages and benefits. It revealed a 0.6% increase, pegging forecasts. This is a minor release compared to the highly influential GDP, so we have not seen this news have an impact on today?s trading.

The final report of the week was July's revised University of Michigan Index of Consumer Sentiment just before 10:00 AM ET. It came in at 90.0, slightly higher than the preliminary reading of 89.5 from earlier this month. That means surveyed consumers are a little more optimistic about their own financial and employment situations than previously estimated. Regardless, it was close to forecasts and has not affected this morning?s mortgage rates.

Next week is another active one with relevant data scheduled for release each day. The week starts off with the very important ISM manufacturing index Monday and closes with the almighty monthly Employment report Friday. There are also several releases in between those two particular reports. Look for details on next week?s calendar in Sunday evening?s weekly preview.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Mondays bond market has opened in negative territory despite favorable economic news. Stocks are starting the week fairly calm with the Dow nearly unchanged and the Nasdaq up 26 points. The bond market is currently down 11/32 (1.48%), which should keep today?s early mortgage rates at Fridays morning levels. We saw bonds improve late Friday that may have caused a few lenders to improve pricing slightly. If your lender was one that did revise rates lower Friday afternoon, you may see an increase of the same size in this morning?s rates.

Todays only relevant economic data was the Institute for Supply Management?s (ISM) manufacturing index for July at 10:00 AM ET. They announced a reading of 52.6 that fell a little short of expectations and was a decline from June?s reading of 53.2. This means that fewer surveyed manufacturing executives felt business improved during the month than did last month. That is a sign of a weaker manufacturing sector, making the data good news for bonds and mortgage rates. Unfortunately, traders aren?t impressed with the news.

Junes Personal Income and Outlays data will be posted at 8:30 AM ET tomorrow morning. This report helps us measure consumer ability to spend and current spending habits. If it shows sizable increases, bond selling could lead to higher mortgage rates. Current forecasts are calling for an increase of 0.3% in income and a 0.3% rise in spending. A larger than expected increase in income means consumers have more money to spend, which is not favorable to bonds because consumer spending makes up over two-thirds of the U.S. economy. Ideally, we would like to see declines in spending and income, but the smaller the increase in each, the better the news for mortgage rates.

Overall, I am now expecting Friday to be the most active day for mortgage rates this week. The middle days should be calmer and Thursday appears to be the best candidate for least active day. Besides the data we should also watch the major stock indexes for bond and mortgage rates direction. Sizable stock gains should pressure bonds and mortgage pricing. However, if stocks go into selling mode, conditions are right for bonds to benefit, driving mortgage rates lower. It would be wise to maintain contact with your mortgage professional this week if closing soon and still floating an interest rate.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Check the rates at www.WMRLoans.com

Mondays bond market has opened flat with little to drive trading today. Stocks are not much of an influence either with the major indexes showing relatively minor losses. The Dow is down 24 points while the Nasdaq has lost 18 points. The bond market is unchanged from Friday?s close (1.59%), but due to some selling late in the day we still may see a slight increase in this mornings mortgage rates. We saw bonds weaken late Friday afternoon, causing some lenders to revise rates upward by approximately .125 of a discount point, maybe a little less. If your lender did not make an intraday revision Friday afternoon, you should see that increase in this morning?s pricing.

There is nothing scheduled for release today that is expected to influence mortgage rates. The rest of the week brings us the release of four pieces of monthly economic data in addition to two Treasury auctions that have the potential to affect mortgage pricing. Some of the data is considered to be highly important, meaning we could see noticeable changes to mortgage rates multiple days.

The weeks activities start at 8:30 AM ET tomorrow when 2nd Quarter Employee Productivity and Costs data is posted. This report will give us an indication of employee output per hour. High levels of productivity are believed to allow the economy to grow without fears of inflation. I don't see this being a big mover of mortgage rates, but it may influence rates slightly during morning trading. Analysts have predicted a 0.5% rise in productivity during the second quarter and a 1.7% increase in labor costs. A sizable increase in productivity and a smaller than expected rise in costs could help improve bonds, contributing to lower slightly mortgage rates tomorrow.

Overall, Friday appears to be the best candidate for most active day with two important reports being released, but Wednesday may also bring a noticeable change to rates. The calmest day will probably be tomorrow or Thursday, although stocks can change that if they rally or sell-off either day. The week is end-loaded with the most important events coming Friday and little the early days. However, it still would be prudent to keep an eye on the markets and maintain contact with your mortgage professional if still floating an interest rate and closing in the near future as circumstances can change at any time.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Tuesdays bond market has opened in positive territory despite unfavorable results in this morning?s sole economic report. The major stock indexes are showing minor gains with the Dow up 29 points and the Nasdaq up 11 points. The bond market is currently up 8/32 (1.56%), but the improvement in this morning?s mortgage rates should be slightly less than .125 of a discount point.

Todays only semi-relevant economic news was the release of 2nd Quarter Employee Productivity and Costs data at 8:30 AM ET. It showed a decline of 0.5% in worker output when analysts were expecting to see an increase of the same size. The Labor Costs reading also disappointed bond traders with a 2.0% increase, exceeding forecasts of 1.7%. Both readings are technically bad news for bonds and mortgage rates, but have had little impact on todays rates. It is worth noting that a huge downward revision in the 1st Quarter Labor Costs reading has left some of us scratching our heads. That reading was revised from up 4.5% to down 0.2%. Fortunately this data is not considered to be highly important, limiting its influence on today?s trading.

There is no economic data being posted tomorrow that needs to be watched. However, we do have the first of this weeks two Treasury auctions that have the potential to affect mortgage rates. Tomorrow has a 10-year Treasury Note auction, which will be followed by a 30-year Bond auction Thursday. It is fairly common to see some weakness in bonds before these sales as investors prepare for them. If the sales are met with a decent demand from investors, indicating that interest in longer-term securities such as mortgage-related bonds is good, the earlier losses are usually recovered after the results are announced. Results of the sales will be posted at 1:00 PM ET of each auction day. If demand was strong, particularly from international investors, we should see mortgage rates improve during afternoon trading tomorrow and/or Thursday. However, weak levels of interest could lead to broader selling in the bond market that could push mortgage rates higher.

Thursday is a relatively light day, but don?t forget about Fridays busy schedule with three morning reports due to be released. Two of the three are considered highly important and can certainly cause noticeable changes to mortgage rates. We should see volatility in the bond and mortgage markets rise as the week winds down.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Wednesdays bond market has opened in positive territory, extending yesterdays afternoon gains. The stock markets are mixed but calm with the Dow up 12 points and the Nasdaq down 8 points. The bond market is currently up 4/32 (1.53%), which with yesterdays afternoon strength should improve this mornings mortgage rates by approximately .250 of a discount point over Tuesdays morning rates.

We have no economic data scheduled today that is relevant to mortgage rates. This afternoon does have something that has potential to affect them. That would be the 10-year Treasury Note auction with results being posted at 1:00 PM ET. If demand for the securities was strong, particularly from international investors, we should see mortgage rates improve during afternoon trading. However, weak levels of interest could lead to broader selling in the bond market that could push mortgage rates higher. If there is a reaction to the sale, it should come during early afternoon trading.

Tomorrows only report is last weeks unemployment figures at 8:30 AM ET. They are expected to show 266,000 new claims for unemployment benefits were filed last week. This would be a small decrease from the previous week?s 269,000 initial claims, indicating the employment sector strengthened slightly last week. Since rising claims hints at a weakening employment sector, the larger the number the better the news it is for mortgage rates. Although, it is worth noting that because this is only a weekly snapshot, it usually takes a surprise increase or decline for the report to affect rates.

Besides the weekly unemployment update, we also have the 30-year Bond auction to watch tomorrow. As with todays 10-year sale, results will be posted at 1:00 PM, so this will be an afternoon event. Todays sale usually has a bigger impact on mortgage rates than the 30-year Bond auction, but a particularly strong or weak interest in either can directly lead to a noticeable change in mortgage pricing.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Float if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Thursdays bond market has opened in negative territory with stocks showing early strength and todays only economic data having little influence on trading. The major stock indexes are showing moderate gains of 61 points in the Dow and 11 points in the Nasdaq. The bond market is currently down 5/32 (1.52%), but strength late yesterday should keep this mornings mortgage rates at yesterday?s early levels.

We saw bonds extend their morning gains during afternoon trading yesterday. Contributing to that move was a decent 10-year Treasury auction. Several of the benchmarks we use to gauge investor demand showed an above average interest in the securities. Once results were posted, the broader bond market improved enough for some lenders to revise rates downward before the end of the day. That improvement is preventing us from seeing an increase in this morning?s pricing. It also helps us to remain fairly optimistic about todays 30-year Bond auction. Results of todays sale will be posted at 1:00 PM ET, so any reaction will come during early afternoon trading.

Last weeks unemployment figures was todays only relevant economic data. The 8:30 AM ET release showed that 266,000 new claims for unemployment benefits were filed last week, down slightly from the previous weeks revised total of 267,000 initial filings. Analysts were expecting to see 266,000 claims and the revision to the previous week was minor. Therefore, todays data has had practically no impact on this mornings mortgage rates.

Tomorrow brings us the release of three pieces of economic data, two of which are considered highly important. The first will be Julys Retail Sales data at 8:30 AM ET. This highly important report comes from the Commerce Department and will give us a measurement of consumer spending. Consumer level spending figures are extremely relevant to the markets because it makes up over two-thirds of the U.S. economy. Current forecasts are calling for a 0.4% increase in sales. Analysts are also calling for a 0.2% rise in sales if more volatile and costly auto transactions are excluded. Larger than expected increases would be considered bad news for bonds and likely lead to an increase in mortgage pricing since it would indicate stronger economic growth.

Julys Producer Price Index (PPI) will also be posted at 8:30 AM ET, giving us an important measurement of inflationary pressures at the producer level of the economy. There are two readings that analysts follow in this release. They are the overall index and the core data reading. The core data is the more important of the two since it excludes more volatile food and energy prices. Analysts are predicting no change in the overall index and a rise of 0.2% in the core data. Stronger than expected readings may raise inflation concerns in the bond market and help guarantee a Fed rate hike sooner than later this year. That would be bad news for bonds and mortgage rates because inflation is the number one nemesis of the bond market as it erodes the value of a bond's future fixed interest payments. As inflation becomes more of a concern in the markets, bonds become less appealing to investors, leading to falling prices, rising yields and higher mortgage rates tomorrow.

The last release of the week will come from the University of Michigan just before 10:00 AM ET tomorrow morning. Their Index of Consumer Sentiment for August will give us an indication of consumer confidence, which projects consumer willingness to spend. If a consumer's confidence in their own financial and employment situation is rising, they are more apt to make large purchases in the near future. But, if they are growing more concerned about their job security or finances, they probably will delay making that large purchase. This influences future consumer spending data and therefore, impacts the financial markets. It is expected to show a reading of 90.6 that would mean confidence was a tad stronger than July's level of 90.0. That would be considered slightly negative news for bonds and mortgage rates. Good news for mortgage shoppers would be a sizable decline in the index.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Fridays bond market has opened well in positive territory following much weaker than expected results in a couple of important economic reports. The stock markets have not had much of a reaction to the news with the Dow down only 15 points and the Nasdaq down 1 point. The bond market is currently up 20/32 (1.49%), but weakness late Thursday should keep the improvement in this morning?s mortgage rates to approximately .125 of a discount point if comparing to yesterday?s morning pricing.

Yesterdays afternoon bond weakness led to widespread upward revisions to mortgage rates. The cause of the selling was not the 30-year Bond auction that actually went fairly well. The indicators showed a similar interest in the securities as Wednesdays 10-year Notes. I believe yesterdays late selling in bonds was more of a reaction to stocks rallying to record levels than anything other reason. Fortunately, this mornings economic data has helped unwind that move.

The first of todays three economic reports was July's Retail Sales data at 8:30 AM ET. It showed that retail-level sales were flat last month when analysts were expecting to see a 0.4% rise. Furthermore, a secondary reading that tracks sales excluding more volatile and costly auto transactions that was expected to rise actually declined 0.3%. These readings clearly show that consumers spent much less last month than many had thought. Because consumer spending makes up over two-thirds of the U.S. economy, this is bad news for stocks and very good news for bonds and mortgage shoppers.

Also at 8:30 AM this morning was Julys Producer Price Index (PPI) that gave us some insight into inflationary pressures at the producer level of the economy. It showed a 0.4% decline in the overall reading and a 0.3% drop in the more important core data that excludes more volatile food and energy prices. Both readings were significantly lower than forecasts of no change and +0.2% respectively, meaning inflation was much weaker than expected at the manufacturing level. Because bonds tend to thrive in weaker economic and low inflationary environments, this report was also quite favorable for mortgage rates.

The third and final report of the day was the University of Michigans Index of Consumer Sentiment for August, coming in at 90.4. This was close to expectations of 90.6 and a bit stronger than July?s 90.0. The increase means that surveyed consumers were a little more confident in their own financial and employment situations than they were last month. That in itself is considered bad news for mortgage rates because rising confidence usually means higher levels of consumer spending. However, this was a minor move that wasn?t much of a surprise and followed two important reports. Therefore, it has had almost no impact on todays mortgage pricing.

Next week brings us the release of a couple of relevant economic reports in addition to the minutes from the most recent FOMC meeting. None of the weeks events are set for Monday, so expect weekend news and possibly this afternoons trading momentum to start the week?s tone for bonds. Look for details on next weeks calendar in Sunday evenings weekly preview.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Mondays bond market has opened in negative territory with stocks starting the week on a positive note. The Dow is currently up 67 points while the Nasdaq has gained 22 points. The bond market is currently down 10/32 (1.54%), which should push this mornings mortgage rates higher by approximately .125 of a discount point if comparing to Fridays morning pricing.

There is no relevant economic data scheduled to be released today. The rest of the week brings us the release of only four pieces of monthly economic data with one being considered highly important. In addition to that data, the minutes from the last FOMC meeting will also be posted. I believe we will see one or two active days for mortgage rates this week with a couple of calm days.

Tomorrow brings us three of those four reports and likely will be one of those active days in the bond and mortgage markets. The first report will be Julys Consumer Price Index (CPI) at 8:30 AM tomorrow morning. The CPI is one of the most important reports we see each month as it measures inflation at the consumer level of the economy. As with last weeks Producer Price Index, there are also two readings in the report. Analysts are expecting to see no change in the overall index and a 0.2% rise in the more important core data reading. Declines in the readings like we saw in last weeks Producer Price Index, should lead to lower mortgage rates since it would mean inflation is still not a threat to the economy and a Fed rate hike may come later than sooner. On the other hand, stronger than expected readings will likely lead to an increase in mortgage pricing tomorrow.

Julys Housing Starts will also be released 8:30 AM ET tomorrow, giving us an indication of housing sector strength and future mortgage credit demand. It usually doesn't cause much movement in mortgage rates unless it varies greatly from forecasts. Tomorrow's report is expected to show a decline in construction starts of new homes last month. The lower the number of starts, the better the news for the bond market, as it would indicate a weaker than expected new home portion of the housing sector.

The third release of the morning will be Julys Industrial Production report at 9:15 AM ET. This report measures manufacturing sector strength by tracking output at U.S. factories, mines and utilities. It is expected to show a 0.3% increase from Junes level. A decline would be considered favorable news for bonds and mortgage rates because it would indicate manufacturing sector weakness and broader economic growth would be more difficult if manufacturing activity is slipping.

Overall, tomorrow is likely to be the most active day for mortgage rates with three reports set for release and Friday or today appear to be the best candidate for least important. Stocks will probably be a contributing factor to bond movement several days with only one important economic report coming this week. I believe bond yields are going to be making a move one direction or another very soon. Unfortunately, it is my opinion that the risk of moving higher outweighs the potential gains of floating for a lower rate. Therefore, I would still proceed cautiously if floating an interest rate and closing in the near future.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Tuesdays bond market has opened in negative territory following mixed economic news. The major stock indexes are showing minor losses with the Dow down 25 points and the Nasdaq down 15 points. The bond market is currently down 5/32 (1.57%), which should push this mornings mortgage rates higher by slightly less than .125 of a discount point from Mondays early pricing.

The first of todays three releases is the one that gave us favorable results. At 8:30 AM ET, Julys Consumer Price Index (CPI) release showed no change in the overall reading and only a 0.1% increase in the more important core data. The overall reading pegged expectations, but the core reading fell short of the 0.2% rise that was forecasted. This means that inflationary pressures in non-food and energy products at the consumer level of the economy were a little softer than predicted. That is good news for mortgage rates as long-term securities such as mortgage-related bonds are more appealing to investors when inflation is low.

Julys Housing Starts was also posted at 8:30 AM, revealing a moderate increase in new home groundbreakings. Analysts were expecting to see a decline, making the data bad news for bonds and mortgage rates. Rising starts indicates a strengthening new home portion of the housing sector and supports gains in construction-related jobs that can reflect in the monthly employment numbers. Fortunately, this is not considered to be an important piece of data, so its impact on today?s rates has been fairly minimal.

Mid-morning came the negative news for bonds and mortgage shoppers. At 9:15 AM ET, Julys Industrial Production report showed a 0.7% increase in output at U.S. factories, mines and utilities last month. Because it was expected to show only a 0.3% increase, the news is negative for rates. Stronger levels of production indicate a strengthening manufacturing sector that makes broader economic growth more feasible.

Contributing to this morning?s bond weakness are comments from a Fed member that clearly stated that current bond yields are too low. His speech influenced opinions on when the Fed would raise key short-term interest rates. Even the likelihood of a September move has gained support (I do not agree) as did the odds of a December rate move. It is just one members opinion, but tomorrows FOMC meeting minutes could give us better insight if others share the same thoughts.

Tomorrow does not have any morning reports to be concerned with but does have something during afternoon trading- the minutes from the last FOMC meeting. There is a pretty good possibility of the markets reacting to them following their release. Market participants will be looking for how Fed members voted during the last meeting and any comments about inflation concerns in the economy, economic growth and the Fed's plans for raising short-term interest rates. Since the minutes will be released at 2:00 PM ET, if there is a market reaction to them it will be evident during afternoon trading. This is one of those events that can cause significant movement in rates after its release or be a non-factor. Therefore be prepared for a move, but not surprised if the impact on rates is minimal.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Wednesdays bond market has opened up slightly with stocks showing early losses. The Dow is currently down 66 points while the Nasdaq has lost 17 points. The bond market is currently up 2/32 (1.56%), which should keep this mornings mortgage rates at yesterdays morning levels.

There is no relevant economic news being posted this morning, but we do have an afternoon event that we need to watch for. The minutes from the last FOMC meeting will be posted this afternoon. Some things traders will be looking for are how Fed members voted last meeting, any comments about inflation concerns in the economy, economic growth and the Feds plans for raising short-term interest rates. There is a pretty good possibility of the markets reacting to them following their release. Since they will be released at 2:00 PM ET, if there is a market reaction to them it will be evident during afternoon trading. This is one of those events that can cause significant movement in rates after its release or be a non-factor. Therefore be prepared for a move, but not surprised if the impact on rates is minimal.

Tomorrow has two minor economic reports scheduled for release. The first is last weeks unemployment update at 8:30 AM ET. It is expected to show that 265,000 new claims for unemployment benefits were filed last week, down slightly from the previous week?s 266,000 initial claims. This report usually doesn't cause much movement in the markets or mortgage rates unless it shows a significant jump or drop in initial claims for benefits. The higher the number of claims, the better the news it is for bonds and mortgage rates because rising claims is a sign of a softening employment sector.

The second report of the morning will be Julys Leading Economic Indicators (LEI) from the Conference Board. They are a New York-based business research group and not governmental agency, so the report does not carry too much importance in the market. The index attempts to measure economic activity over the next three to six months and is considered to be moderately important. A higher than expected reading is bad news for the bond market because it indicates that the economy may be strengthening more than thought. However, a much weaker reading means that the economy may not grow as much as predicted, making stocks less appealing to investors. This also eases economic growth concerns in the bond market and could lead to slightly lower mortgage rates tomorrow. It is expected to show an increase of 0.4% in the index, indicating moderate economic growth over the next couple of months. But it will take a sizable difference between forecasts and its actual reading for this report to noticeably influence mortgage rates.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Thursdays bond market has opened flat following no surprises in this morning?s economic data and a calm open in stocks. The major stock indexes are mixed but flat with the Dow down 4 points and the Nasdaq up 5 points. The bond market is currently unchanged from yesterdays close (1.54%), but strength late in the day yesterday should create an improvement in mortgage rates of approximately .125 of a discount point if comparing to Wednesdays morning levels.

Yesterdays afternoon release of the FOMC minutes did not really give us much to be excited about, yet bonds improved after their release. They indicated that Fed members felt key short-term rates needed to be raised sooner than later but more economic data is needed before making that move. Weak inflation that continues to run well below the Feds preferred 2.0% annual rate is still a concern and apparently could prevent some votes to raise rates. The recent pick-up in the employment numbers was noted, although it was also stated that a failure to maintain that growth could alter the timetable for raising rates. Overall, the comments are neutral for mortgage rates at best so the afternoon rally in bonds is a little bit of mystery. It is possible that traders were expecting to see something that indicated a September rate hike was likely and the late bond strength was more or less a mini-relief rally when the minutes did not give that impression.

The first of this this mornings two pieces of economic data was last weeks unemployment numbers at 8:30 AM ET. They showed that 262,000 new claims for unemployment benefits were filed last week. This was a small decline from the previous weeks 266,000 initial filings and below forecasts of 265,000. However, this is minor variance in a weekly report. Therefore, the news has had little impact on todays bond trading or mortgage pricing.

Also posted this morning was Julys Leading Economic Indicators (LEI). The Conference Board announced at 10:00 AM ET that their LEI rose 0.4% last month, matching forecasts. The increase means the indicators are predicting growth in the economy over the next several months. Since this is a minor report from a non-governmental agency that showed no surprises, it has also not come into play with todays mortgage rates.

Tomorrow has nothing scheduled for release or taking place that is expected to influence mortgage rates. Look for stocks to drive bond trading and mortgage pricing tomorrow. Without a noticeable move upward or lower in stocks, there is a decent possibility of seeing a relatively calm day for mortgage rates.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Float if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Fridays bond market has opened in negative territory despite early stock selling also. The major stock indexes are showing moderate losses of 62 points in the Dow and 6 points in the Nasdaq. The bond market is currently down 16/32 (1.58%), but slight strength late yesterday is limiting this mornings increase in mortgage rates to approximately .125 of a discount point if comparing to Thursday?s morning levels.

There is nothing of importance scheduled for release today. Traditionally, on days like this we would normally turn towards stocks for direction. Unfortunately, that isn?t going to be of much good to us since stocks are also showing losses. What usually is bad for stocks is good for bonds. That is not the case today, so we left with little to reference to as the week comes to close.

Next week brings us a wide range of events to follow that may influence mortgage rates. There is a handful of economic reports, a couple of Treasury auctions and a two-day Fed conference in Jackson Hole, WY. The data ranges from minor to important, but none are considered key or potential market-movers. The week starts off light with nothing scheduled for Monday and only a housing report that is considered to be of low-importance Tuesday. All the good stuff takes place Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

Look for details on all of next weeks relevant activities in Sunday evenings weekly preview.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Lock if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Mondays bond market has opened in positive territory with stocks starting the week in negative ground. The major stock indexes are showing relatively moderate losses with the Dow down 58 points and the Nasdaq down 5 points. The bond market is currently up 6/32 (1.55%), but due to weakness late Friday we will likely see little change from Fridays morning mortgage pricing.

There is nothing of importance scheduled for today. In fact, it?s the only day of the week that does not have something that has the potential to influence mortgage rates. The rest of the week brings us the release of five pieces of economic data to watch in addition to two Treasury auctions and the annual Jackson Hole Fed conference. Only one of the reports can be considered highly important, but with so much going on we still could see an active week in the financial and mortgage markets.

Julys New Home Sales data is the first report of the week, coming tomorrow morning at 10:00 AM ET. This report will give us an indication of housing sector strength and mortgage credit demand, but tracks only a small portion of all home sales. The majority of U.S. home sales are covered in Wednesdays Existing Home Sales report. Tomorrows report usually doesn't have much of an impact on bond prices or mortgage rates unless it varies significantly from forecasts. Current predictions are calling for a decline in sales of newly constructed homes from June to July. An increase in sales would indicate housing sector strength, making the data negative for mortgage rates.

Overall, I am expecting to see the most movement in rates Thursday, although Friday could be a fairly active day also. We need to watch the stock markets for rate direction also as significant selling in them could help bring funds into bonds. Generally speaking, stock strength often hurts the bond market while stock losses make bonds more appealing to investors. This should be a more active week for mortgage rates than last week. Therefore, please proceed cautiously and keep an eye on the markets if still floating an interest rate.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Lock if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Tuesdays bond market has opened in positive territory despite stronger than expected housing news. The stock markets are reacting as we would expect with the Dow up 69 points and the Nasdaq up 27 points. The bond market is currently up 3/32 (1.53%), which should keep this mornings mortgage rates very close to yesterdays morning pricing.

Todays only relevant economic data was Julys New Home Sales report at 10:00 AM ET. The Commerce Department announced a 12.4% jump in sales of newly constructed homes, exceeding forecasts and push sales to their highest level since October 2007. That increase indicates the new home portion of the housing sector is stronger than many had thought, making the data bad news for bonds and mortgage rates as it is a sign of economic growth.

Tomorrow also has only one piece of economic data that may influence mortgage rates. That would be the sister report to todays release, July's Existing Home Sales report. The National Association of Realtors will release this data and 10:00 AM ET tomorrow, giving us another measurement of housing sector strength. It covers a very high percentage of all home sales in the U.S., but usually does not have a major influence on bond trading and mortgage rates unless it varies greatly from analysts forecasts. It is expected to show a small decline from Junes sales, meaning the home resale sector softened slightly last month. This would generally be good news for the bond market and mortgage rates because a strengthening housing sector makes broader economic growth more likely. But unless the decline is much larger than current forecasts, the report will likely have a minimal impact on tomorrows mortgage pricing.

Tomorrow also has the first of this weeks two Treasury auction that may affect bond trading and mortgage rates. There are auctions several days, but the two relevant ones are tomorrows 5-year Note and Thursday's 7-year Note sales. Results of these will be posted at 1:00 PM ET each day. If investor interest is strong in the auctions, we can expect the broader bond market to rally and mortgage rates to move lower. However, lackluster demand could lead to bond selling and higher mortgage rates tomorrow and Thursday afternoons.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Lock if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Wednesdays bond market has opened in negative territory even though today?s only economic data gave us favorable results. The stock markets are showing losses of 45 points in the Dow and 5 points in the Nasdaq. The bond market is currently down 5/32 (1.56%), which should again keep this morning?s mortgage rates very close to yesterday?s morning pricing.

The National Association of Realtors released their Existing Home Sales report at 10:00 AM ET this morning, showing a 3.2% decline in home resales. The decline was larger than expected, indicating some weakness in the housing sector after sales in June reached their best level since February 2007. The pullback is not anything to be concerned with or overjoyed about. It was a relatively minor move in a moderately important report, so its impact on todays trading and mortgage pricing has been minimal.

Today also has the first of this weeks two Treasury auctions that may affect bond trading and mortgage rates. There are auctions several days, but the two relevant ones are todays 5-year Note and tomorrow's 7-year Note sales. Results of these will be posted at 1:00 PM ET each day, so any reaction will come during early afternoon trading. If investor interest is strong in the auctions, we can expect the broader bond market to rally and mortgage rates to possibly move slightly lower. However, lackluster demand could lead to bond selling and higher mortgage rates later this afternoon and possibly tomorrow.

Besides the Treasury auction, tomorrow also has some economic data that we need to watch. Both reports are set for release at 8:30 AM ET. The more important of the two is Julys Durable Goods Orders. This Commerce Department release will give us an important indication of manufacturing sector strength. It tracks orders at U.S. factories for big-ticket items, or products that are expected to last three or more years such as appliances, electronics and airplanes. Analysts are expecting to see an increase of 3.5% in new orders, pointing towards manufacturing sector strength. This data is known to be quite volatile from month to month, so an increase of this size does not raise too much concern about the economy. However, a much smaller increase is good news for the bond market and mortgage rates as it means manufacturing activity is not as strong as many had thought. A secondary reading the excludes more volatile transportation-related orders is expected to rise 0.4%. The softer the reading, the better the news it is for the bond and mortgage markets.

The second piece of data will be last weeks unemployment figures. They are expected to show that 265,000 new claims for unemployment benefits were filed last week, up from the previous weeks 262,000. The larger the number of claims, the better the news it is for bonds and mortgage rates because rising claims is a sign of a softening employment sector. However, this is only a weekly snapshot of the sector, so its influence on mortgage rates is often weak unless it shows a significant variance from forecasts.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Lock if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Thursdays bond market has opened slightly in negative territory following stronger than expected economic data. The stock markets are flat despite the favorable economic news with the Dow up 7 points and the Nasdaq unchanged. The bond market is currently down 3/32 (1.57%), which should again keep this mornings mortgage rates very close to Wednesdays morning pricing.

Yesterdays 5-year Treasury Note auction went very well in terms of investor demand for the securities. Unfortunately, we did not see much a reaction once results were posted at 1:00 PM ET. It does allow us to be optimistic about todays 7-year Note sale though. Results of it will also be posted at 1:00 PM ET today, so any reaction will come during early afternoon trading. If investor interest is again strong, there is a possibility of seeing bonds improve this afternoon, possibly enough to slightly improve mortgage pricing.

Julys Durable Goods Orders was the more important of today?s two economic releases. This Commerce Department announced an increase of 4.4% in new orders for big-ticket products. That was stronger than the 3.5% rise that was expected. Even a secondary reading that excludes orders for more volatile and costly transportation-related items (such a new airplanes) exceeded forecasts (+1.5% vs +0.4%). Those increases indicate that the manufacturing sector was stronger than many had thought last month, making the data bad news for bonds and mortgage shoppers.

The second piece of data was last weeks unemployment figures, also at 8:30 AM ET. They showed that 261,000 new claims for unemployment benefits were filed last week, down slightly from the previous weeks 262,000 initial filings. Analysts were calling for 265,000 initial claims, so the 261,000 is considered bad news for bonds as declining claims is a sign of a strengthening employment sector. Fortunately though, this is only a weekly snapshot so it has had little influence on this mornings mortgage rates.

Also worth noting is that today is the start of the annual central banker conference in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. There have been major events to come out of this event in the past while others have been non-factors. Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen is scheduled to speak this year, so all eyes will be on her speech at 10:00 AM tomorrow. The conference runs Thursday through Saturday, so we could still see the markets react to something from this event. Of particular interest would be talk of inflation and future Fed rate hikes.

Tomorrow has two economic reports set for release, starting with the first revision to the 2nd Quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at 8:30 AM ET. The GDP is the total of all goods and services produced in the U.S. and is considered to be the best measurement of economic growth or contraction. This reading is the second of three that we see each quarter. Last months preliminary reading revealed that the economy grew at an annual rate of 1.2%. Tomorrows revision is expected to show that the GDP actually rose 1.1%, meaning the economy was a bit weaker than previously thought from April through June. A smaller than expected reading should help lower mortgage rates, especially if the inflation portion of the release does not get revised higher. There will be a final revision issued next month, but it probably will have little impact on mortgage rates since traders will be more interested in the current quarter's activity.

The second report of the morning will be the University of Michigans revised Index of Consumer Sentiment for August. This sentiment index helps us track consumer willingness to spend. It is expected to show a slight increase from August's preliminary reading of 90.4. If it revises lower, consumers were less confident about their personal financial situations than previously thought. This would be good news for the bond market and mortgage rates because waning confidence usually means that consumers are less likely to make large purchases in the near future. The lower the reading we get, the better the news it is for mortgage shoppers.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Lock if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...

 

[Tamalewagon]

Fridays bond market has opened in positive territory despite early stock gains and mediocre results in todays economic data. The major stock indexes are showing noticeable gains during early trading with the Dow up 91 and the Nasdaq up 31. The bond market is currently up 10/31 (1.54%), but we should see an improvement in this mornings mortgage rates of less than .125 of a discount point.

Yesterdays 7-year Treasury Note auction was not met with much of an investor demand. Fortunately for mortgage shoppers, the bond market had little reaction when results were posted at 1:00 PM ET. Therefore, there was no impact on mortgage pricing also.

The first revision to the 2nd Quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP) reading kicked off today?s events at 8:30 AM ET. It showed the GDP rose at a 1.1% annual pace during the 2nd quarter. This was slightly lower than the initial estimate of 1.2%, but matched what analysts were expecting to see. With no surprise and the data somewhat aged now, we haven?t seen much a reaction to the news in the bond or mortgage markets.

Next up was the University of Michigans revised Index of Consumer Sentiment for August just before 10:00 AM ET. They announced a reading of 89.8 that fell short of forecasts. That was also a decline from the preliminary reading of 90.4, meaning surveyed consumers were less optimistic about their personal financial situations than many had thought. This is favorable news for bonds because weaker levels of confidence usually translates into softer consumer spending that fuels economic growth.

Fed Chair Janet Yellens speech this morning in Jackson Hole did not really give us anything new or too surprising. She did indicate that the economy is ready for another rate hike, but did not say when it will come. The majority of market participants are predicting a December rate hike with a few saying it will come next month. I believe the markets are not expecting the Fed to make a move next month, so doing so could be quite negative for the bond market and mortgage rates. Generally speaking, the Fed tries to avoid monetary policy moves too close to Election Day, so many feel a rate hike during November?s meeting is not likely.

Next week is pretty busy in terms of economic reports scheduled for release that could affect mortgage rates. There is data set to be posted each day with the two highly important releases coming late in the week. There is fairly important data coming early Monday with the release of Julys Personal Income and Outlays report. Look for details on it and the rest of the weeks activities in Sunday evening?s weekly preview.

If I were considering financing/refinancing a home, I would.... Lock if my closing was taking place within 7 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 8 and 20 days... Lock if my closing was taking place between 21 and 60 days... Lock if my closing was taking place over 60 days from now...